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Closing arguments are underway in the trial of Michael Jace, the former "Shield" actor facing a first-degree murder charge in the shooting death of his wife. Lolita Lopez reports for the NBC4 News at 6 p.m. on Friday May 27, 2016. (Published Friday, May 27, 2016)

There is not enough evidence that an actor who played a police officer on television planned the shooting death of his wife, his defense attorney said Friday in an effort to convince jurors that a first-degree murder conviction is not warranted in the case.

Closing arguments began Friday morning in the murder trial of Michael Jace, with dueling portrayals of the actor presented to a jury. Defense lawyer Jamon Hicks told a Los Angeles jury that Jace acknowledges he killed his wife, but there isn't enough evidence that the actor planned the killing. Hicks said he's not seeking an acquittal but advocating a manslaughter conviction.

Hicks told jurors that what was going on in Jace's mind is crucial. He called the facts horrible but hoped jurors would listen to the argument that Jace didn't plan the attack.

A jury of six men and six women will have to decide after hearing closing arguments whether to convict "The Shield" actor of first-degree murder, or choose a lesser charge.

Jace acknowledges he shot and killed his wife on May 19, 2014, in their Los Angeles home. He waited for police after calling 911 and gave a lengthy interview to detectives in which he told them he wanted to inflict pain on April Jace and planned to shoot her in the leg with her father's revolver.

Instead, Jace shot her three times and fired two shots into her legs in a hallway within sight of their young sons, who were ages 5 and 8 at the time.

Jace's now 10-year-old son testified Wednesday that he heard his father tell his mother, "'If you like running, then run to heaven.'"

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Michael Jace, who had small roles in films such as "Boogie Nights," ''Forrest Gump" and the television show "Southland," had been out of work for years and financial struggles put a strain on their marriage.

April Jace, who earlier that day had told her husband she wanted a divorce, was killed moments after returning to their home after a youth baseball game. Text messages presented during the trial show Michael Jace had told his wife he had left their home, but instead was waiting with the loaded handgun.

"You will hear that on May 19, 2014, the defendant took a loaded gun, a revolver, and waited for his wife to come home and then shot her in the back and then shot her two more times in front of their kids," Mokayef told jurors.

Jace's attorney Jamon Hicks called the case tragic in opening statements Tuesday that case boiled down to the actor's mindset at the time of the killing, and whether it was premeditated. "This case is not about how it was done. We acknowledge it. We accept responsibility," Hicks said. "This case is about why it was done."

If convicted of first-degree murder, Jace faces 50 years to life in prison.